Skip to main content

Review of Dear Evan Hansen at Royal & Derngate (Derngate), Northampton

First performed in 2015, Dear Evan Hansen remains the musical of the modern teen's life, showcasing all the troubles in that generation of popularity and social media. And as this long UK tour of the West End and before that Broadway smash hits the Royal & Derngate, it offers a troubling mirror on modern society.

Before seeing this show, I had avoided all knowledge of the story Dear Evan Hansen tells, and with that came a joyful voyage of discovery as the captivating story evolved. Therefore, if you have also managed to avoid the story, skip the next paragraph and enjoy a new story to be found.

Evan Hansen is a troubled teen who struggles to fit into society and cannot find friends. As a result, his therapist has suggested that he write letters to himself, "Dear Evan Hansen." When one of these letters is found on the body of an equally troubled teen, Evan finds himself spiralling into a world of fictitious friendship, which gets increasingly out of control.

The story told in Steven Levenson's book and through Benj Pasek and Justin Paul's music and lyrics is very clever and absorbing. The audience can identify with different allegiances within the excellent cast of characters, whether it be the troubled Evan, the pressurised mother, Heidi, the sulky Zoe, or Connor, the equally troubled teen.

The story lives in the modern world, with social media behind many of the complex parts of the tale, and this was brought to the stage, never overpoweringly, cleverly, with Ravi Deepres' excellent video design. Also, Adam Penford directs lightly, emphasising character rather than movement; this is a very still production with often little character movement on the stage. The songs here are part of why this happens; many are just gentle ballads, good, but not with the ability for big stage numbers. This show is a non-showy stage musical, and some may find disappointment in it, but like Blood Brothers, this is a play at its heart that just happens to be told with songs.

The performances will not disappoint. Ryan Kopel's stunning performance as Evan, complete with all the nervous ticks of such a person, leads an excellent cast. He also translates these into musical performances using his superb vocals.

Alice Fearn is also immaculate as Ewan's mother, Heidi, primarily via her troubled solos and perhaps her best, So Big/So Small. Equally full of emotion are the parents of Connor, dealing with their impossible situation in very different ways. Richard Hurst, as Larry Murphy, is distant at times, while, as understudy as the mother, Jessica Lim's Cynthia, embodies the emotion visibly for the couple.

As Connor, Killian Thomas Lefevre is superb, emitting both the anger and high emotion his character is feeling, coupled with some brilliant comic timing during scenes portraying the fictional emails that Evan and Jared (a brilliantly funny performance from Tom Dickerson) create. Finally, from the cast, Lauren Conroy gives a captivating performance as Connor's sister, Zoe, who is confused and often distant as she deals with the many emotions life throws at her.

Dear Evan Hansen is an excellent show, but it falls short of my top mark due to a slight lack of musical variety and a somewhat simple ending that is too perfect following events. Also, although it has a solid and eventful story, it feels overlong by the end of its 140-minute running time. Despite this, though, Dear Evan Hansen comes highly recommended for its ability to tell a relevant and emotional story well.

A captivating musical play which you very much should find now.

Performance reviewed: Tuesday 14th January 2025 at the Royal & Derngate (Derngate), Northampton.

Dear Evan Hansen is on stage at Royal & Derngate until Saturday, 18th January 2025.

For further details about the Royal & Derngate and to book tickets, see their website at http://www.royalandderngate.co.uk

Photos: Mark Brenner


Popular posts from this blog

Review of Calamity Jane at Milton Keynes Theatre

Should you never have seen Calamity Jane before, as I hadn't before catching it on its UK tour's arrival at Milton Keynes Theatre this week, you may still very well know a little about it by its name alone. However, barring a couple of well-known tunes, I knew far less than I thought, and it was an excellent experience of discovery. The story of Calamity Jane recounts the town of Deadwood and, specifically, the tomboy Calamity Jane, full of tales and daring deeds that may or, more likely, did not happen. When the local theatre owner fails to bring the American star promised to the stage, Calam sets it upon herself to get the biggest star of the country to grace that darn stage. Calamity Jane is, at its core, just a jolly old-fashioned musical, filled to the brim with disturbingly simple but very catchy numbers from Sammy Fain and lyrics from Paul Francis Webster. Some you will no doubt recognise, such as Deadwood Stage , Just Blew in from the Windy City , and Secret Love . ...

Review of Lord Of The Dance at Royal & Derngate (Derngate), Northampton

The stage show Lord of the Dance possibly needs little introduction to most people, as it has become a legend and now, in this touring version, subtitled rather immodestly, 25 Years of Standing Ovations, it reaches a landmark anniversary. Those that do not know of the show would probably well know its spiritual fathers Michael Flatley, and even more likely Riverdance , from which Lord of the Dance sprung with a proper spring in its step. During the interval of the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest, Riverdance hit the world by storm as Michael Flatley and his troop of dancers possibly presented the most famous part of Eurovision ever, certainly of the non-singing variety at least. Here, this touring show brings that same style Flatley created from traditional Irish dancing across the country once again and it is truly something special to see. The concept of the show is simply a battle between good and evil told through dance, and some captivating and stunning songs performed by Celyn Cartw...

Review of Murder She Didn't Write at Royal & Derngate (Royal), Northampton

Murder She Didn't Write , stopping off for a four-day run at Royal & Derngate on a lengthy UK tour, treads the now well-worn path of an improvisational evening of theatre entertainment. Unsurprisingly, from the title, this show from Degrees of Error's takes a murder mystery as its inspiration, with the story influenced by ideas from the audience each evening. Due to this, Murder She Didn't Write and a review are very much an individual affair. What I saw in my evening at the theatre will differ significantly from what the audience will see the following evening; however, the fine performers will remain. The touring cast, in no particular order, is Lizzy Skrzypiec, Rachael Procter-Lane, Peter Baker, Caitlin Campbell, Stephen Clements, Douglas Walker, Harry Allmark, Rosalind Beeson, Sylvia Bishop, Emily Brady, Alice Lamb, Sara Garrard, Peta Maurice and Matthew Whittle. For my performance, Skrzypiec, Procter-Lane, Baker, Walker, Bishop, and Clements were on stage alongsid...